


Never Let Me Go

by AnyShowWithARainbow



Category: Pretty Little Liars, emison
Genre: Emison - Freeform, F/F, PLL, Pretty Little Liars - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:47:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27043753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnyShowWithARainbow/pseuds/AnyShowWithARainbow
Summary: Alison is a doctor and meets Emily at her hospital. It is love at first sight, but Emily doesn't want her to know she is sick so she lies about being a doctor as well. Emily enlists the help of her friend and doctor Spencer Hastings to pull the lie off. How long will it last? What will happen if the truth comes out?#EmisonEndGame always.
Relationships: Emison - Relationship
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	1. The Storm that Nobody Expected

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I have been a long time Emison shipper and am recently making my Fiance watch all of PLL so they are fresh on my mind. I've been wanting to write this story for a while and found new inspiration in Emison. Please let me know what you think! Any feedback is welcome. :) Emison is end game!

**Chapter 1: The Storm that Nobody Expected**

* * *

***Alison's POV***

You arrived during the storm that nobody expected. The sky was open and grumbling in loud roars and moans. The rain came down as if it had never met the earth before as the ground often seemed to tremble in time with the thunder. I found myself feeling somewhat threatened at the act of vengeance on our small town from Mother Nature.

My mind began to wander to simpler times...simpler places...simpler things. I could feel a soft smile spread across my face thinking of my mother making Sunday dinner while my brother and I played outside in the crisp autumn air. For a moment I could smell the trees and the freshly cut grass as if I were right back out on the farm. That was until the abrasive scent of rubbing alcohol and saline seemed to take over every sense I had.

I gave a quick shake to my umbrella so I wouldn't track water through the hospital and pulled my blonde lockes out of the neck of my coat. I had thrown it on so quickly to dash through the rain that it stayed firmly planted in the collar which I'm sure has made me into a frizzy, frazzled looking mess.

_ Oh well...  _ I thought.  _ These places aren't made for fashion shows and pageantry _ .

My inner monologue was quickly muted at the sight of you.

I thought I knew what love was...or could have been...or would have been...or should have been. All of the above. I had an arbitrary idea of what it meant to care for another person and to watch them grow. But when I saw you...I realized I had never even felt before.

My body lay dormant for years until you. One look and I felt my bones come alive. One-touch and I could feel my lungs breathing- aware of every inflation and how air came and went from my chest. At the sound of your voice, I felt my skin rise towards the sky and float along with the clouds.

"Are you...sure you're okay?" I heard an inquisitive voice echo through my daze. I hadn't even realized that you had bumped me into the registration desk of the emergency room.

_ Emergency! The emergency room? Are YOU okay? Why would something that could land you in this hospital ever happen to someone as perfect as you? _ My mind began racing- worried about someone who is a complete stranger.  _ Stranger? Well, we'll have to change that...what did you say your name was? Your name, oh my god! I don't even know your name. _

I quickly ripped myself from my eternal stream of thoughts and fumbled an introduction. "Alison." I said with full confidence. However, your confused gaze made me question that confidence. You remained silent. "Alison...is my name. What did you say yours was?"

"I didn't..." Great. Now you think I'm a weirdo... "Emily." You extended a soft smile letting me know you were only teasing. "Are you okay?" I followed your gaze down to my left hand. Were you checking for a ring on my finger?

_ I most certainly am yours for the taking...  _ I chuckled to myself before realizing why your gaze actually trailed down to my hand.

"Oh...oh, God!" I exclaimed seeing a sizable amount out of blood trickle from the pad of my pointer finger and onto the blindingly white tile of the ER. At this point, it was mostly out of embarrassment rather than worry for my own being.

_ Lousy, cheap umbrella...  _ I chastised myself internally for not investing a few more dollars on something that wouldn't pinch the living hell out of me and cause me to bleed in front of such an astounding woman. I looked around for the box of tissues that is normally perched on the registration desk. Failing to spot something that would help solve the issue at hand (ha) I locked eyes with you again. My embarrassment faded as I saw your furrowed brow. You were so concentrated and I was too busy being completely enamored to notice your hand outstretched towards me.

"Here you go." You pulled a thin tissue out of a small plastic pouch that I presumed was a travel pack. Convenient. You're already looking out for me... "I always keep them on me. Good thing I do..." You raised your eyebrows seeing the small gash in my finger. "That looks a little deep...do you need help? I can-"

"No, no that's okay." I cut you off without even letting you finish your sentence. A cute first date would not have involved you aiding me from bleeding out. "I'm a doctor." I cringed at how that sounded. It added a 'period' to a conversation that I did not actually want to end.

"Oh! Me too." Without thinking I gave you a once over. Your gray sweatpants clung to your hips in all the right ways but were also why I didn't assume you'd be used to aiding with a glorified paper cut. Seeing that this was a small hospital I assumed I would've remembered seeing you before... "Not here though." You said so quickly that it almost sounded like one syllable.

"I was just...here on a consult and the patient just..." You mimed an explosion with your hands. I couldn't help but notice how strong they looked. "all over me... Hence...the sweatpants." You chuckled somewhat nervously.

"Oh no." I rebutted. "You do not need to explain. If sweatpants were sterile I'd wear them in every surgery and every OR I could. Plus...if anyone should get to wear sweatpants on the job it should be you with how well you pull them off." My eyes immediately widened as my ears heard what I just said. As I felt my body catch on fire from sheer terror at myself I also felt the breath go right out of my lungs as your smile stretched from ear to ear. You looked at the floor as a rosy shade of red spread across your cheeks and I could feel my heart yearn to know everything I could about you.

That was the part of the conversation where it would have been normal to both go our separate ways. I, however, never would've been able to live with myself if I had let that happen.

"Emily..." I broke you out of your trance, "I'm just starting my shift, but I have a few minutes before rounds. Would you like to grab a coffee or a bagel or...anything really?" I chuckled as I stuttered over my offer. My brain seemed to have been completely hijacked and my normal confidence was a causality of the take-over.

You seemed anxious. I was hoping I didn't misjudge the situation and just assume you took my flirting as a compliment rather than something vaguely creepy. Your dark brown eyes met the slim watch on your wrist- checking the time as you slightly chewed on the inside of your lip. I took the opportunity of your hand being more visible as well as you not looking at me to check for a ring.

_ Well, at least she's not married.  _ I somewhat smirked to myself. Maybe I had a chance. Your eyes drifted past me down the hall to the main part of the hospital and I slightly turned my head to follow them.

"It's okay if you have somewhere to be or a team to get back to." I waved my hand gesturing to dismiss my previous offer. I saw you breathe in as your eyes lingered down the hallway for just one more second.

"No." A smile took over your face and I saw your brown eyes sparkle. "I have nowhere to be for the next few minutes. And  _ no one _ to get back to." The emphasis on no one had a small smirk creeping onto my face.

"Well then follow me Ms. Fields." I reached out my hand and watched your eyes widen. "Shit," I mumbled. My injury was forgotten by the prospect of spending more time with you. "Um...one second."

I turned back towards the registration desk and there was still no one in sight.  _ So much for being here for people's emergencies...  _ I internally scoffed _.  _ My legs lifted more of my body weight as I got on my tiptoes to reach over the desk. I wasn't able to see much but after my hand bumped into a tape dispenser, stapler, and knocked over an entire container of pens I found what I was looking for.

"Aha!" I smiled victoriously, lifting up the small bandaid. As I started to rip open the package I turned my head to make sure you were still there. I followed your big brown eyes down to see what you were looking at. Then it hit me. You were checking out my ass. I felt a smirk creeping up to my face and had to bite my lip to avoid asking you if you liked what you saw.

_ Keep it cool, Alison. We don't want to scare her away.  _ My inner monologue rang. I may have been able to control my words, but I definitely could not control my face. As your eyes quickly darted to the floor knowing you had been caught I couldn't help but look a little smug.

"Okay.  _ Now _ follow me, Ms. Fields." I smiled my biggest smile as I lifted my finger as proof of my temporary solution. I definitely needed a stitch or two but the bandaid would last for a few minutes. I turned to give you one more view of the ass I had just caught you ogling. I peeked over my shoulder to make eye contact with you. You were blushing again.

_ God help me, Emily.  _ Was all I could manage to think.  _ God help me. _

***Emily's POV***

I rushed down the hall trying to make it to my appointment before Spencer kicked my ass or I was forced to reschedule. I swung through the door and saw an annoyed dark-haired doctor looking up at the clock above me and back down to me in exasperation.

"Spencer..." I started when she folded her arms over her chest and gave me a challenging look. "Right...Dr. Hastings. I'm so sorry I'm late. I got caught up-"

"It's fine, Em." She sounded annoyed. "I have more sick patients than just you, you know." She continued to chastise.

"I know." I rushed out apologetically. "Again, I'm really sorry." I felt incredibly guilty for holding her up when she always found time to work around my schedule. Her eyes continued to scold me before she gave in and a small smile crept up onto her face.

"Okay. It really is fine, Em. It was honestly nice to have a quiet few minutes in here. I never seem to get those anymore." She sat on the rolling stool near the computer and gave the big chair in the center of the room a few pats inviting me in to sit as well. "And sorry about the Dr. Hastings thing." She mumbled, knowing I hate when she makes me call her that.

"No, you're not." I roll my eyes playfully and chuckle. There was a beat of silence in the air while she just looked at me with no emotion whatsoever.

"You're right." She broke the silence. "I'm not." Then chuckled while she rolled over to where I had just been standing to close the door. "What took you so long anyways?" Her eyes peered into me inquisitively. "I know you're nervous, Em. But avoiding the situation is not the answer."

I quickly shook my head in protest.

"I'm not avoiding the situation." Her eyebrows raised slightly, challenging what she assumed was a lie. "I'm not!" I defended myself and felt a grin spread across my face. "I met someone." I shrugged my shoulders and felt my cheeks starting to catch on fire. Spencer's mouth dropped in shock.

"Emily Fields. You are not prowling my hospital to get laid are you?" She said incredulously.

" _ Your _ hospital, Spence? Did they make you chief of surgery overnight and you not tell me?" The taller girl slightly huffed at me and rolled her eyes before smiling again.

"You know what I mean. So who is she? Is it another patient?" My head turns towards the floor and I can only peak up at her as my face continues to burn hot. I shake my head no. "A nurse?" She continues her line of questioning as she wiggles her hands into a pair of latex gloves. I avoid eye contact now, knowing where this is headed, and shake my head once more. "A doctor?!" She asks a little incredulously. "Who?"

Her last word was less of a question and more of a demand. Spencer's competitiveness did not stop at sports and academics. It somehow came into her career too. In Spencer's mind, there can only be one medical professional in my life. Maybe if it was up to her there would only be one doctor in this hospital...

"It's a small hospital, Em. I can find out. You know Toby works security and will tell me whatever I want to know." She continues to challenge knowing he'll tell her even if she didn't.

"Okay, fine. But please promise me you'll leave her alone. We just had coffee. It is way too soon for Crazy Spencer to be released on her." She raised her eyebrows high when I mentioned the 'crazy' party, temporarily looking up at me over my chart. "Her name is Alison."

Spencer almost dropped my file and looked at me through stone-cold eyes.

"Wait...Alison DiLaurentis?" She put more emphasis on her last name and I looked at her with furrowed eyebrows as I shrugged my shoulders.

"She didn't tell me her last name. She just put her number in my phone under 'Ali'." I said looking at her concerned that she was about to have an aneurism.

"Blonde hair?!" She almost yelled while snatching my phone to find the number and type it into her phone to see if it was the same Ali. "It is her! That bitch." She mumbled the last insult under her breath.

"What is the deal, Spence? I thought you liked everyone here except for the dinosaur doctor who won't retire?"

"Herman? He's dead." She rolled her eyes. My eyes widened by her casual cruelty. "Fine. Ali isn't a bitch...she's just also a candidate for Chief of Surgery." Spencer slightly pouts. My eyes roll all the way back in my head. "I won't stop your blossoming romance. Just know I'm not helping you with it at all."

"It's not a blossoming romance," I mumble. "But...we do have a slight problem."

"What is that? You all just met 20 minutes ago how can there already be trouble in Paradise?" Spencer laughed as she put up my scans so the light could shine through them. Her smile faltered seeing my latest images, but she quickly recovered and turned back to me.

"I kind of told her I was a Doctor too." I said nervously. Spencer laughed out loud. "What? You don't think I could be a doctor?" I challenged.

"Em, it's not that. It's just that you're not. You're a  _ very _ sick patient." The humor in the room got completely sucked out of the air with her emphasis on just how sick I was. She smiled at me softly and rubbed my shoulder. "She's bound to see you here again. And it won't be while you're operating in the OR. It'll be while you're being rolled around in a wheelchair."

"About that..." I began. "I kind of told her I was here consulting on a patient." Spencer looked me up and done as if to say, ' _ In sweatpants? _ ' "I told her there was an accident and I had to change out of my scrubs." I answered her silent question.

"And she believed you?" Spencer chuckled at herself as if she had just told a joke.

"Yes." I said completely seriously making Spencer remove her hand from my shoulder and put both hands up defensively.

"Okay...well that worked for this time, but what about next time? Or the time after that?" She said trying to discourage me away from my lie.

"Well...I've already thought that far ahead." Spencer's eyebrows shot up- not seeing any solution to this situation. "I told her I was consulting on a patient with you."

"So she thinks you're a  _ neurosurgeon _ ?!" She shot back.

"Why does that seem so hard to believe?!" I shot back a little hurt.

"It's not, Em. But you can't just pretend to be a neurosurgeon." She blinked at me like it was completely obvious.

"Why not?" She just stared at me like I had five heads. "I don't have to actually do surgery. When I'm here I can just be in scrubs and hang around you. It's not like I'm working right now anyway. Besides- It's probably better I'm here more if my condition has gotten that much worse."

Spencer becomes less judgey at the mention of my health and puts her hand on my knee.

"I would love to be able to watch over you more. You know that. But it would never work. There are laws. You can't see any other patient's information... If someone were to find out..."

"They won't." I countered, motioning across my lips to show that they would be 'sealed'. I saw a little pity in her eyes.

"There just isn't a way, Em...I'm sorry." My shoulder slumped in defeat and she stood up to examine my scans again. "...Unless..." I perked back up again.

"Unless what, Spence?" I hurry her train of thought along so that she would share it with me.

"Theoretically, our 'consult' patient could be you. That way you're only seeing your information. It would be like an appointment just...in a different place. We could do your chemo in a private room and if you were here more I could watch how you're handling it. Make sure you're okay... Your mom would love that. Honestly, so would I."

"So you'll help me?" I reach for her hand to pull her attention away from my scans. I can't help but peek at them too. I don't know what they mean, but I do see more spots than I did last time. My brain was starting to look like Swiss Cheese. I see her sigh so heavily that her shoulders dramatically rise and fall in one swift motion. She turns to me and her eyes meet mine for a split second before her face breaks out into a smile.

"I will help you, Emily." I couldn't contain the squeal that ripped out of my body. I stand up quickly and envelop her whole slender body in my arms.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I chant, squeezing one of my best friends extra tight.

"Don't thank me yet." She says more seriously pushing me off of her slowly. "I didn't say I was happy about it. Plus this won't all be fun. Em, chemo is going to take a lot out of you."

"I know," I say seriously so she knows I understand. "but shouldn't I enjoy myself?" She still looked nervous so I continued onto a place I probably shouldn't have... "While I still can?"

I felt her fist collide with my shoulder roughly. My hand shot up caressing the spot she just assaulted.

"Ow!" I shout. "Do you always hit patients?"

"Only the annoying ones." She shoots back before her demeanor changes. "Em, you're going to make it through this." There wasn't room in her tone for debate. Her confidence exuded onto me.

"I believe you." I smile softly grabbing her hand to show how much I appreciate her caring for me. She suddenly stomps her foot in a dramatic Spencer Hastings fashion.

"I can't believe I'm doing something to help Alison DiLaurentis." She pouts.

"Don't be a baby. Why didn't you ever tell me you worked with such hot doctors?" She fake gagged with a dramatic guttural noise. For a moment I thought she may actually vomit. I giggle at her antics and sit back in preparation of my exam.

***Alison's POV***

"Aria!" I call out in the attendings' lounge where she normally is before rounds. I scan the room and see her fast asleep on a chair she moved by the coffee maker. "Wake up." I gently smack her knee and raise my eyebrow.

"Alison!" She seems to snap out of it seeing that her boss had caught her sleeping. "I was just...I was between patients and I..."

I giggle a bit letting her know my sternness was just in teasing.

"Well, now I am your patient." I say to her lifting my finger that was bleeding through the bandaid I had patched on it earlier. I pushed out my bottom lip to pout a bit as she rushed to me worried.

"What happened?" She began to take the bandage off examining how deep the cut was.

"The rain," I said...clearly daydreaming about something else. She furrowed her eyebrows and pushed her short hair behind her ear before going to wash her hands. I sat at the small table in the middle of the room by the staff cubbies.

"The rain...?" She questioned waiting for a better explanation.

"My umbrella...or something. I don't know. It doesn't matter." I smiled a bit smugly as I fished a suture kit I grabbed from downstairs out of my purse and put it on the table. My eyes found the window and I began daydreaming again.

"What has gotten into you?" She questioned while wiping the table down with a few alcohol pads to sanitize the area before laying down a small surgical drape she had found in her cubby. I was too far into my own imagination to wonder why she had it on hand. Aria had been my fellow for about 6 months now, but I knew her as a resident for a few years prior to that. Long enough to know she was always hoarding supplies somewhere she shouldn't be. When pressed she always assures they are just for emergencies. I guess I should be grateful since it means we don't have to do this in an open space or hospital room.

"More like 'who'." I smirked as her jaw dropped.

"Alison!" She smiled wide. "You're having sex again?! Who's the lucky lady?"

"Not yet. But maybe eventually." I smirk. "It was someone here for a consult with Dr. Hastings." Aria grimaced a little at the name.

"Was she as intense as Hastings?" I could understand her worry. Spencer was nothing if not...very tightly wound.

"The complete opposite. I don't know, Aria. She's just...ugh!" I gasp in a happy frustration. I could not get the dark-haired girl out of my mind. My smile was still taking full residence on my face until I felt a sharp pinch. "Ow!" Aria looked at me with wide eyes.

"...Sorry." She kept working as I burned a hole through her with my glare.

"Do you always do your stitches like this?" I tease. "I know I taught you better than that." I giggle as I hear the door swing open.

"Dr. DiLaurentis?" Speaking of the devil. My shoulders tense up at the sound of Hastings' voice. I didn't dislike her...she just...stresses me out. I turn my head to acknowledge her.

"Yes, Dr. Hastings?" I smile warmly, trying not to make my disappointment about the other doctor's presence apparent.

"May I speak with you?" She smiles then looks down at my hand a little confused. "When you're done?"

"Of course. I'll meet you at the nurses' station right outside." I turn around and furrow my brow playfully at Aria wondering what was up. Usually, if there's a pediatric patient that she gets to first she just pages me.

"Dr. Montgomery." I hear her say in acknowledgment to my fellow before I hear her exit the room.

"What do you think that was about?" I say a little snarkily rolling my eyes at the taller Doctor's sense of urgency.

"Have you heard anything about the Chief of Surgery position yet?" Aria questioned. I shook my head softly no, feeling a little shy about the subject of a promotion. "Well, at least you'll be coming back alive then." She smiles before her face falls. "...I think..."

I laugh deeply as she finished up my sutures.

"I can handle Spencer Hastings." I assure as she bandages me up. "I'll meet you for rounds. Make sure the residents are nice to their interns!"

"Good luck!" She shouts towards me as shimmy into my white coat and put my stethoscope around my neck. I turn around and shoot her a playful wink as I open the door to go meet with the seemingly on-edge Doctor.

_ What could she want this early?  _ I think to myself.

* * *


	2. Chapter 2: Everything is New

**Chapter 2: Everything is New**

* * *

***Alison's POV***

_ Calm down, Ali. _ I tried to soothe myself. I could feel my teeth almost chewing a hole through my lip. Moisture made itself apparent by weighing the palms of my hands down so I wiped them quickly on my dark blue scrub bottoms. The motion was actually quite calming so I continued to bring my hands up to my upper thighs and run them back down to my knees, gently squeezing along the way. I matched my breathing with my strokes and realized how incredibly fast I was breathing when the scratchy material of my scrubs started to rub my hands raw.  _ God, why am I so nervous? _

My right leg bounced up and down as I checked the time on the large clock above the hospital cafeteria doors. As I watched the seconds slowly tick by my mind wandered back to my conversation with Dr. Hastings…

***Flashback to earlier that day***

_“Hi, Dr. Hastings. How can I help you?” I watched her eyes give me a once over. Normally, I would have been flattered, but I sensed a little disdain through her squinted gaze. My usual confidence faltered through her unwavering intensity. I straightened up my white coat before clearing my throat._ _What on earth is wrong with me?_

_ “Hi, Alison.” She seemed to snap out of some train of thought as her usual ‘Hastings’ smile took over her slim face. Her hands found her way to her long brown locks as she put them up into a ponytail. When I saw her fish her scrub cap out of her pocket I realized she was about to go into surgery. “I heard you met Dr. Fields this morning?” _

_ I felt a blush creep up onto my cheeks. I hope this shade of red matched my blue eyes because I could tell the burning in my cheeks was not going away anytime soon. Emily was talking about me? Already? Only good things I hope...I felt a nervousness wash over me and I saw Spencer’s face soften. She brought her hand to my elbow to give it a soft squeeze, I assume to break me out of my train of thought. As her hand fell back to her side she let out a soft chuckle.  _

_ “She couldn’t stop talking about you. I’m not sure what was in the coffee you two had this morning, but I practically had to will her to get through our consultation this morning.” I smiled at the thought of Emily gushing about me. I wonder if she blushed as hard as I am right now… Then it hit me. _

_ “Wait...I thought I saw her after your consultation? Is she here for more than one patient?” I inquired, hopeful that I would get to run into the dark-haired beauty again. I saw Spencer’s eyes widen and it seemed as if words got caught in her throat. While it was uncharacteristic for Spencer I couldn’t give it much thought since my brain was purely invaded by when I would be able to see Emily next. _

_ “You did.” She blurted out after a moment of silence. “I mean...sort of in the middle of it… There was an accident.” Her words rushed out and left no room for further inquiry. My eyebrows furrowed for a moment before my train of thought was interrupted. “She’s still here. We should...have lunch!” _

_ My entire face lit up at the prospect of getting to know more about this elusive doctor. I smiled widely and responded: “I’d love that. I have rounds and then I’m going to assist Dr. Montgomery while she takes the lead on one of our cases but I should be free around one o’clock. Does that work for you...and Dr. Fields?” I felt my cheeks burning again and stuffed my hands into my coat pockets. Could I be any more awkward? I am a grown woman acting like I’m in middle school over a girl. _

_ Spencer seemed to notice, but she didn’t give me a hard time. She just smiled and scrolled through what I assumed was her work calendar on her phone. After a few taps, she looked back up at me. _

_ “One o’clock works perfectly. I’ll just text Dr. Fields to let her know I made us lunch plans. I have a surgery I’ll have to prep for at 2:30 so I can’t go far. Does the cafeteria sound okay?” She looked at me a little apologetically. Little does she know I’d probably eat in a broom closet if it meant I got the chance to get to know more about Emily. I waved my hand to dismiss her apologetic attitude. _

_ “The cafeteria sounds perfect.” I said as I saw Aria heading towards rounds. I motioned for her to wait for me. Spencer followed my eyes and acknowledged Aria again with a small smile. Aria visibly gulped and I rolled my eyes at how little she could control her body language. “I’ll see you then, Dr. Hastings.”  _

_ “Yeah, see you.” she said softly. I gave her one last smile before catching up with Aria. I had a thought I knew she was not going to like. A smug grin grew on my face and I saw her looking nervously between Spencer and me.  _

_ “What?” She said with wide eyes. “Did something happen?” She stopped in her tracks as I grabbed her arm to keep her walking in the direction of the pediatric wing.  _

_ “Yes.” I said matter-of-factly. “You just made lunch plans.” I saw her throat move to gulp even more dramatically before. I chuckled softly at her nervousness but explained no further.  _

***End Flashback***

My eyes looked down from the clock when I saw Aria come through the doors of the cafeteria. I waved her down, excited someone was here that I could shove my nervousness onto. She could tell I was a bit off and looked at me inquisitively. 

“Are you okay?” She questioned while approaching me with caution. I rolled my eyes a bit- annoyed at her question. I obviously was  _ not _ okay. When her eyes widened at my harshness I started to feel guilty. It is impossible to be mean to Aria with her big eyes just begging for kindness.

“Yes.” I caved. “Well...no. I mean...maybe.” A sigh escaped me while I buried my head in my hands. “I told Spencer I’d have lunch with her and Emily.” I said while pouting into my hands. When I peeked up at her the younger doctor’s face continued to look confused. Her eyebrows raised waiting for an answer to a question she never asked. My eyebrows furrowed back at her not knowing what she was asking.

“Who’s Emily?” I squinted at her. I needed her to catch up so she could calm me down before the other women got here. My chest rose and fell with a sigh.

“The girl I met this morning. The one who was here on a consult with Hastings.” I explained as if she should have read my mind. Her expression changed towards one of sympathy and understanding. Aria was filled with nothing but empathy and her face always seemed to show it. She brought her hand up to rub my back in a back and forth motion. The physical reassurance seemed to ground me...but only a little.

“Well, that’s good. Didn’t you want to see her again?” Her innocent voice questioned.

“Of course I want to see her again. Just before it was only her and me. Now Spencer will be here and she hates me. Who knows what she’ll say?” I rambled a bit.

“Was lunch your idea or hers?” She shot back challenging my nervousness.

“Hers.” I answered softly. She looked at me with pointed eyebrows when she realized she had made a point. “But that doesn’t mean anything!” I countered her silent rebuttal. 

“Do you really think Dr. Hastings would invite you to lunch just to humiliate you in front of a colleague?” I looked at her incredulously as if the answer should be obvious.

“Yes.” I answered with no hesitation or doubt in my voice. She pursed her lips and thought for a moment. 

“You’re right.” She decided and I couldn’t help but use my right hand to smack her shoulder. My open hand collided with her so hard she almost fell out of her chair. “Ow!” She shot back. “What the hell? You almost knocked me over.” She said bringing her own hand up to soothe the area. I just rolled my eyes.

“You’re tiny. A blade of grass could knock you over.” I shot back before she seemed to drop her protest to my actions. She could see how anxious I was. 

_ I’ll apologize later…  _ I made a mental note before brushing off my assault on the shorter woman and looking up at the clock. The other two doctors would be here soon.

“Wait...you dragged me into a lunch with Dr. Hastings?!” Aria asked incredulously, putting all of the pieces together. She was angry and I looked at her tenderly knowing why.

“Aria…” I started and it looked like she was going to interrupt me so I raised my eyebrows telling her silently to let me finish. “Just because you’re my fellow does not mean you need to have the same feelings towards other doctors as I do. I shouldn’t have shared my personal feelings towards her with you.” She rolled her eyes, but I continued. “She is an incredible doctor. Besides, she may very well be the next Chief of Surgery. If you want a job here after your fellowship you’ll need her vote just as much as mine. It helps to have friends in high places, Aria.”

She scoffed, but she knew I was right. I hadn’t been paying attention to the door so when I felt a cold hand touch my shoulder I jumped. I heard someone gasp loudly and then I realized it was me. I turned around seeing Dr. Hastings and Dr. Fields giggling a little.

“Sorry,” Spencer said, not sounding sorry at all. “I did not mean to scare you.” I had a few choice words for Hastings, but when I saw Emily shoot me a playful wink I couldn’t help but feel all of my annoyance and anger slip away. Anger and pettiness were definitely rare for me these days, but when those feelings struck they were incredibly hard to stop. While I sure as hell didn’t think now would be the best time to give Emily a preview, I did wonder how she managed to take all of those feelings away so easily.

“Hi, Emily.” I smiled softly and saw her blush. When she looked down to the floor I took the opportunity to let my eyes drift down her body. Her sweatpants and baggy t-shirt had been exchanged for a pair of dark blue scrubs matching my own. I felt myself biting my lip again, but this time it was to stop myself from being too obvious about just how attractive I thought the girl standing in front of me was.

She had a slim figure but I could tell her shoulders were strong. Her scrub bottoms didn’t completely envelop her tennis shoes like mine did so I could tell she had long legs. I swallowed when I realized how dry my mouth had gotten while raking my eyes over Emily’s figure.

_ She isn’t a piece of meat.  _ I thought to myself, chastising my neanderthal behavior. Emily’s gaze caught mine and I could tell I’d been caught. I opened my mouth to say something, but a smile spread across her face and she beat me to the punch.

“We need to get food. I’m starving. Do you all want to come with?” She gestured towards the few lines of options. Her eyes fell towards Aria and she extended her hand. “I’m Emily.” Aria softly grabbed her hand while standing up.

“Aria.” the shorter girl introduced herself back. I couldn’t help but smile at the two interacting. They both seemed so genuine and pure that I was starting to question if I could handle the two of them in the same room. After their quick handshake, Spencer looped her arm through Emily’s and led her toward the salad bar. I saw Emily’s eyebrows raise and they exchanged a few words before Spencer huffed and walked over to the ‘create your own burger’ line. Emily looked smug upon getting her way.

_ I’d give it to her whatever way she wanted…  _ My mind began before I stopped myself. I was, however, sure of my next thought.  _ She would always get her way with me. _ I didn’t notice I was staring at the woman until Aria snapped me out of my thoughts.

“She looks really familiar. What hospital did you say she was from?” I shrugged my shoulders, mildly annoyed that she had stopped my staring. I saw her staring as well as her teeth chewed on her bottom lip.

“I haven’t asked. I assume it's nearby, but Spencer could’ve flown her in. It depends on how serious the consult is I guess.” Aria didn’t seem satisfied with my answer so I pressed further, teasing her. “Should I be worried I’m dipping into your large pool of ex-lovers?” She finally snapped out of her trance, but only to look at me and roll her eyes as dramatically as possible.

“If there were a woman on that list it would be you.” I giggled while starting towards the salad bar. She giggled back and began to follow me in the same direction. I tossed my hair over my shoulder and gave her my most sultry voice.

“Why, Aria...I’m flattered.” I batted my eyelashes her direction then giggled at her deadpan expression. Aria was the straightest girl I’d ever met, but I could never help myself when it came to teasing her. 

“Don’t be. I would’ve slept with Herman before you.” She chuckled as my jaw dropped in shock. I playfully swatted her arm.

“Aria! Let the man rest in peace.” I scolded before chuckling as she just shrugged her shoulders matter-of-factly. I shook my head at her antics before grabbing a container to make my salad. I couldn’t help looking over in Emily’s direction one last time. For some reason, I felt the need to make sure she was safe. It isn’t that crazy of a notion...she is from a different hospital after all. She could get lost!

I knew I was being ridiculous, but before I turned around I noticed both of the doctors engaged in what seemed to be like a slightly heated discussion. Emily’s eyebrows were furrowed deeply to the point that they were almost touching the bridge of her nose. Her lips were slightly pursed in a way that made her seem almost worried. I wanted to soothe any worry she could ever have… 

Spencer slightly slammed her tray down and turned towards Emily. I could tell whatever she was saying was incredibly serious. I assumed they were having a disagreement about their patient. Aria and I fought like that constantly. 

_ Maybe I’ll be able to ask her about it someday...  _ I mused to myself. I heard Aria clear her throat and I realized I was holding up the line. I gave her a little eye roll and apologized to the doctors that were waiting behind us before moving down the line.  _ Someday, Dr. Fields...someday. _

***Emily’s POV***

The moment I saw Dr. Montgomery sitting next to the blonde-haired beauty I felt my heart stop in my chest. Spencer didn’t seem to notice my hesitation because she kept barreling towards the two women to get their attention. If I didn’t know any better I’d say Spencer was trying to scare Alison, but surely she behaves at work.

I caught up, finally, to the taller girl just as I heard Alison gasp. I made a mental note to chastise Spencer for picking on the woman. She’d never want to go on a date with me if I was friends with a bully. I did giggle a bit because Alison looked so cute when she got scared. I shot a wink in her direction then met her bright blue orbs. Upon making eye contact with her all of my anxiety melted away about the shorter woman who was next to her. It was like for just one moment we were suspended in time- the two of us sharing a moment that no one else was privy to.

“Hi, Emily.” her soft voice beckoned me further into her world. I felt my cheeks catch on fire so I quickly snapped out of my trance and looked towards the ground. If I was lucky it may swallow me whole. When I felt the blonde’s eyes burning into me I felt a little more confident. 

_ Maybe I should’ve been a doctor? _ I thought, chuckling at myself inside of my head.  _ If I had known I looked this good in scrubs maybe I would have finished school. _

The thought of my academic career being put on hold started to bring my mood down so I quickly snapped out of it and suggested we all go get food. I realized I was being a little rude to Alison’s company so I let my eyes fall on the shorter woman and tried to suppress the anxiousness I felt building in my chest.

“I’m Emily.” I extended my hand. I tried to muster a smile and hoped Alison didn’t notice my reservation as Dr. Montgomery softly grabbed my hand.

“Aria.” She introduced herself back. I could feel Alison smiling which helped to dull the feeling of intense panic I felt inside. I let her hand go and felt Spencer leading me towards food. She started to veer towards the salad bar when I raised my eyebrows at her.

“I am not eating salad while food still tastes good to me.” The mention of having to start treatment soon made Spencer huff, knowing she’d give into whatever I wanted. She began to lead me to the “create your own burger” line and I felt a smug smile spread across my face. It was quickly replaced with worry when I remembered who I just ‘met’. I made sure we were far enough away from Dr. Montgomery and Alison before I lit into Spencer.

“Why didn’t you tell me Dr. Montgomery was going to be here?!” I asked incredulously. Her eyes went wide not knowing where my anger was coming from.

“Em, I didn’t know.” She started. Her eyes were peering into me like I was a puzzle she was trying to solve. “Dr. Montgomery...she isn’t wearing a coat or badge, how did you know her last name?”

“She was there, Spence. She was in the ER the first night I came in.” Spencer’s jaw dropped finally putting the pieces together.

“Oh, shit.” She said as the color drained from her face.

***Flashback to Six Years Ago***

_ The whole world seemed to be spinning as I returned to consciousness. I had been feeling bad for a few months but usually a warm shower helped. I guess not this time. I tried to clear my throat in an effort to speak but it was incredibly dry. My eyes scanned the room for someone to motion to, but I only saw a short woman in light blue scrubs with her back turned to me.  _

_ My limbs felt incredibly heavy so the only way I could get her attention was a soft grunt. It was barely audible, but by some miracle she heard and turned around. Her eyes took up a good portion of her face- but her smile proved to be bigger as she came towards me. _

_ “Hey, Emily right?” I shook my head yes. I felt so weak that I wasn’t sure if she noticed. Her mouth closed as the right side of her mouth lifted a little higher than the other. It could’ve been perceived as pity but it felt more like an ‘I understand’ look. “How are you feeling?” _

_ I darted my eyes to the cup of water sitting on the table that was slightly rolled away from my bed. Her eyes quickly followed my gaze and her smile took over her face again. She began to move towards the cup. _

_ “Ah- of course.” She opened the straw next to the cup and sat it softly within the water. When she approached me she bent the straw in my direction, but before bringing it to my lips continued: “I know you’re thirsty, but take it slow okay? I don’t want you choking on my watch.” _

_ I nodded my head in understanding and tried my best to follow her directions. As soon as I had taken a few sips I cleared my throat again. My neck strained as I tried to produce words, but eventually I was successful. _

_ “What happened?” I was obviously in a hospital so there was no sense in asking where I was. My eyes fell on the door window and I immediately noticed the hallways. I came to see Spencer here all the time to have lunch. I wonder if she is working today… _

_ “It appears you had a little spell. Right now it is looking like just an episode of syncope, but we’re going to run a few more tests just to be sure. We also need to take you up to get some images of your brain, but we’ll let you rest for a little longer first before we try to move you. Is there anyone I can call for you? The EMT’s didn’t bring any belongings with you, but the person who called 911 gave us your first name.” _

_ I wracked my brain trying to think of who I was with. Maybe I should start giving out business cards to everyone I hook up with… Why is this doctor staring at me? Oh...right. _

_ “Um, no. That’s fine. Could you tell me if Dr. Hastings is working today?” She smiled warmly at me before heading over to the computer. After a few minutes of research, she turned back to me. _

_ “It looks like Dr. Hastings is on call with Dr. Fitz tonight so she should actually be here any minute. We paged neuro to do a preliminary exam on you before we did any further tests.” I gulped at the information. If Spencer doesn’t have warning I’m not sure what her reaction will be. _

_ “Did they bring my phone with me? I really need to text Spencer before she comes in here.” Her eyes turned apologetic and I knew we were both about to be in for a wild ride. I tossed my head back against the pillow that was propping me up. This proved to be a bad idea as it began throbbing from the sudden movement. _

_ “Dr. Montgomery.” I hear a male voice address the small doctor. He looks in my direction and smiles. “Ah, Emily is it? I’m Dr. Fitz.” He smiled at me warmly. “I didn’t realize you were awake. That is perfect actually. Could you give us your last name, please?” _

_ “Fields.” I hear Spencer’s voice assert, slightly panicked, as she stood in the doorway. I could tell she was shocked by the way her entire body seemed to be frozen. “Her last name is Fields.” She says again running through the door this time. I could feel her panic before I even realized she was coming my way. _

_ “Oh my god, Em. What happened?” She rushed out as she reached me and held my face between her hands. Her questions and presence were a bit overwhelming seeing as I just came back to consciousness. Dr. Montgomery seemed to notice and stepped closer towards Spencer to explain. “Why didn’t you page me?” She spat at the young doctor. _

_ “Spencer.” I chastised her. I could feel that she was scared, but bullying a resident wasn’t going to help that. The taller girl completely ignored my warning and stood up. Her hand found her face to wipe away a tear that was starting to shed. _

_ “You can go, Dr. Montgomery.” Spencer said, avoiding eye contact even though her vulnerability was very obvious without it. The younger woman seemed perplexed and looked at Dr. Fitz to say something. The other two doctors in the room seemed to have a staring contest for a few seconds. It appeared as though they were silently communicating, but I was too out of it to know what it could be about. He just shrugged his shoulders towards her before Spencer broke the silence again. “Now, please.”  _

_ Her voice left no room for question and Dr. Montgomery bit down on her lip to, I assume, stop herself from saying something she shouldn’t to a superior. After another breath of silence the shorter woman turned on her heel and quickly left the room. I couldn’t tell for sure, but it looked like she used her sleeve to wipe a tear off of her face as she rounded the corner. _

_ “We’ll take care of you, Em. I promise.” Spencer continued after the woman’s exit. She extended her hand, signaling Dr. Fitz to give her my chart. The man hesitated, pondering his words before he said them out loud.  _

_ “Dr. Hastings…” He began. “You know you can’t touch this patient.” She rolled her eyes and grabbed the chart out of his hands anyway. “Dr. Hastings.” His voice was pointed in warning. _

_ “Emily is there anything you don’t want me to see in here?” I shook my head ‘no’ while making eye contact with Spencer. There was a lot happening at the moment and to be honest I was mostly just scared. “Okay.” _

_ She shot a look at Dr. Fitz before he sighed and left the room to either tattle on Spencer or compose himself. I sighed a bit and watched as Spencer flipped through my chart- seemingly forgetting I was even in the room. I looked out the window again and saw Dr. Fitz talking to Dr. Montgomery. She did not look happy at all as she gestured towards my room. _

_ I’ll have to ask Spencer about that later… I thought as I began drifting to sleep. _

***End Flashback***

“Em...Em, are you okay?” Spencer tried to softly ease me out of my trance. It took a moment but my eyes snapped back to hers and I could feel the worry on my face.

“What if she remembers me, Spence?” I said. The worry felt like it was eating a hole through my body. My fingertips were numb and my cheeks felt like they were on fire. Spencer began to talk but I interrupted before she could even get a word out. “Spencer, what if she tells Alison?”

Spencer seemed equally affected by worry and my constant stream of questions was not helping. She slammed her tray down on the cold metal of the bar in front of us and shot me a pointed look before she started grabbing various condiments she doesn’t even like. I call her name again before she explodes at just above a whisper.

“I’m thinking, Emily.” My shock at her outburst is evident on my face. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath- a telltale sign that she is trying to center herself. When her eyes find mine again she seems much calmer. She smiles a little at me to apologize. “Look, Em. There are laws. Even if Dr. Montgomery remembers you; she can’t tell Dr. DiLaurentis anything about your medical history. The most she’d be able to say is that you were her patient once.”

I still felt like the ground beneath my feet might give way. My neck felt strained from how taught I was holding my jaw. If I bit down any harder I might lose some teeth. Spencer seemed to notice and gave me a squeeze on my shoulder.

“It’s a really big ‘if’, Em.” She continued to reassure me. “Aria had to have been a first or second-year resident. That was years ago. Plus, as soon as your results came back you immediately got passed off. She wasn’t on your case long. My mom made sure of that.” I furrowed my eyebrows at her last statement.

“What do you mean your mom made sure of that?” I questioned, not following. Her mom was on the board but wasn’t a doctor. I’m not sure what she would’ve had to do with putting together my medical team.

“Nothing. My mom just wanted the best doctors for you, Em. If you remember correctly  _ I  _ wasn’t even on your team until I finished my fellowship. Dr. Fitz was very protective of you. I think my mom put the fear of all of God’s smite towards Rosewood in him. Come to think of it… If he hadn't left I’m not sure I’d be on your team now.” She rambled, getting lost in her own thoughts.

_ Spencer’s right. _ I decided to be soothed by her words.  _ I met Dr. Montgomery a lifetime ago. I’m sure she has had so many patients since then that there is no way she could remember someone from back then. _

“Would it be so bad though, Em? Dr. DiLaurentis blushes like a schoolgirl whenever your name is brought up and you two just met this morning. I’m sure she wouldn’t care if you weren’t a doctor. You know...we’re not as shallow as people think.” Spencer pointed out. While I’m sure there was some truth to her words I doubled down quickly.

“There is no way she would go on a date with me if she knew I lied to her within our first few minutes of meeting. Just…” I pondered while looking in the blonde’s direction. I turned back to Spencer with a new resolve. “Look. If it ends up being something and starts to get serious I’ll tell her. There’s no sense in taking a chance on ending something before it has even begun.” Spencer still seemed hesitant so I tried to lighten the mood. “I thought you wanted to spend more time with me?” I teased. “What? Are you changing your mind already?”

I poked her side and giggled as soon as her ticklish-ness broke through her stone-cold exterior. As she paid for our food I took another peek at the blonde. She was already back at the table and noticed me looking in her direction. She raised her hand and wiggled her fingers in a silly little wave. I felt my cheeks starting to reach my eyes as a huge smile took residence on my face.

_ I’ll tell her.  _ I thought.  _ Someday. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Hello! The next chapter will have more Emison interactions. I just needed to set up the story a bit more for context. Please let me know what you think! Any feedback is welcome. I felt inspired to write this so quickly because of the reviews the first chapter got! :) As always- Emison is endgame! 


	3. Chapter 3: I Wanna Have Your Babies

**Chapter 3: I Wanna Have Your Babies**

* * *

***Alison's POV***

My head seemed to be so full of thoughts yet also completely silent at the same time as my eyes took their time exploring all of Emily's features. Her face seemed so soft, yet her individual features were so strong on their own. Her jaw made a hard line until it curved to meet her long, slender neck.

_So much space to kiss._ A slightly slutier version of me chimed in the back of my mind. I inwardly chuckled at the fact that I found myself so attracted to the woman so quickly. _Anyways…_ My inner monologue granted me permission to continue examining the breathtakingly gorgeous woman. Her eyebrows, too, had strong arches. Everything about her looked so defined. However, it all melted into one face that I felt I could get lost in for a lifetime.

Her smile was so genuine and warm. Every time it spread across her cheeks I felt my pulse echo throughout my entire body. It was as if she was conducting a one-woman orchestra- her smile led and my body followed in perfect time. The laugh that erupted from her chest was pure ecstasy. Between the melody it provided and the deafening drum of my heartbeat we made such beautiful music together.

Her cheeks seemed to be a constant shade of rosy pink to crimson red and it made me wonder if I had chosen the wrong career. In this moment, I longed to be a painter just so I could spend my whole life trying to do those shades justice. While the consistent presence of pigment tugged on every last heart string I had- I knew, even if I had the skill of all the greats combined, that I would never come close to replicating how well the colors blended with her warm skin tone. Not to mention her eyes… _God, her eyes!_ My consciousness screamed. Every moment she has ever lived is woven into those orbs that could beckon even the hardest of souls in. I wanted to ask her for every story I could see knitted into the fabric of her being.

Spencer and Aria were going back and forth about some of the latest research that was all of the rage in the medical community as well as trading hospital gossip. Normally, I'd love to discuss it all, but I couldn't keep my eyes away from Dr. Fields for long. Occasionally, she would turn towards me and her eyes would find my own. When they found me again I giggled softly at her as my head rested on my right hand. I combed my fingers through my hair before crossing my arms and resting them on the table.

Her eyes darted down to my chest and back up to me so quickly that if I had blinked I would've missed it. I didn't have to look down to see if there was food on my shirt, because subconsciously I knew that I would be tempting her when my crossed arms raised my chest a bit higher.

_There is much more where that came from, Dr. Fields…_ The sluttier me came back in for the kill. _Just wait until you see me with my shirt off._ I could feel a blush creeping up to my cheeks so I quickly put another thought in my mind at the same time as I said it out loud.

"Would you like a tour of some other parts of the hospital?" I offered. Spending time with Spencer in a more personal setting was surprisingly enjoyable, but I was longing to spend some one-on-one time with Emily. "I'm not sure how much Dr. Hastings has shown you but I'd be more than happy to show you around." A huge smile spread across her face and again she was commanding my body to her every whim and didn't even know.

"I'd love that." She nodded softly as she spoke. The moment felt more intimate than the topic of discussion seemed to warrant. There was a certain shyness to our interaction that I couldn't quite put my finger on. It almost felt as if we were meeting again after many years and relearning the most simple things about one another.

_God, you are really perpetuating some lesbian stereotypes._ My thoughts taunted me. _Buy a girl a drink first before you decide your souls are long lost lovers._ I chuckled at myself internally. I did feel a connection to the woman in front of me, however, that I could not explain. _God, Ali...at this rate she'll be moving in tomorrow._ It took every ounce of strength I had to stop myself from physically rolling my eyes at my inner monologue. _I wouldn't say no if she asked to have a sleepover though. ...Every night...for the rest of time._

In an effort to bring myself back to earth and not slap the shit out of my brain for the joyride it was taking me on- I focused back on the beautiful woman that was the cause of my wandering thoughts. I looked over at the other women who had been ignoring us for some time now and gave Emily a playful eye roll before getting their attention.

"We should probably leave these girls to bond anyways." I chuckled as they both completely froze at the mention of them getting along so well. They both looked like they had just gotten caught in the most heinous of crimes: getting along. I'm not sure what was in the water here today, but they truly had been acting like old friends geeking out over a similar interest and gossiping about people like it was their job.

_Maybe I've been too harsh on Spencer…_ My mind mused as I gave Aria a soft pat on the back. _Or maybe Spencer and Aria should just sleep with each other too._ Slutty me tried to take over my brain again and I could only find a few faults in her logic. _Number one...gross. Number two…it's a bit presumptuous of me to assume Emily and I will end up in bed together. Number three...I really need to get laid. Aria and Spencer? Really?_ To end my inner argument with myself I began to stand up, gathering my trash to throw out. I smiled at the other two women before continuing:

"I am going to get Dr. Field's a little more familiar with our hospital. You two carry on. Thank you so much for having lunch with us today, Dr. Hastings." I smiled genuinely which seemed to make her happy. "I really enjoyed myself. We should do this more often." I truly meant it. While I paid little attention to anything she said it was nice for Aria and me to talk to other doctors. We usually just kept to ourselves during the workday. It served to bring us incredibly close, but I worry that Aria has pulled away from her peers and isolated herself. I didn't want her to miss out on opportunities to forge new connections.

Spencer turned towards Emily and seemed a bit worried. Her eyes were asking silent questions that I couldn't quite make out and the darker haired woman brushed them all off. I took a guess at what could be on her mind.

"I promise to take good care of her, Dr. Hastings." I giggled as I raised my right hand. "Scouts honor." She appeared to still have reservations. "I don't bite...I promise." At that I heard Aria scoff and softly chuckle as she stared into her pudding cup, scraping the bottom with her spoon even though she had practically licked it clean already.

"Yeah, unless you ask her too." She mumbled, but loudly enough for everyone to hear. My jaw dropped and my eyes widened seemingly as large as they were able to. Spencer and I at least had one thing in common now: we were both completely mortified. My body was completely frozen until the sound of Emily giggling met my ears. I couldn't help but to join in and let myself laugh it off. Hastings quickly joined in too- most likely deciding that my embarrassment was hilarious.

Spencer still looked a bit terrified and I was now concerned that she thought I would defile her consulting doctor. While that was not off the table for the future, I at least wanted to take her on a date first. With the way Dr. Hastings was eyeing her protectively, I was starting to wonder if I'd need to ask for her permission...

"Are you going to be okay, Em?" Spencer asked in almost a whisper, I'm assuming so that I wouldn't hear. My mind couldn't help but wonder about the nickname… As far as I knew the taller woman was engaged to Toby from the security team.

_Maybe they had a third?_ I wondered. _No way… Right?_ My mind continued as I saw Emily give the girl a small nod. With that, I began to lead the girl away towards the door. _I guess I'll find out…_

***Emily's POV***

Alison was doing an incredible job of showing me around the hospital. However, I hope she didn't stray too far because I was too focused on the way her hands gestured as she spoke to actually learn my way around the place. Her face was astoundingly expressive, but not more so than her hands. While she was recounting her first day here and the many times she got lost her hands traveled up and down pointing towards all sorts of different directions. They would open and close in an effort to portray the emotions of her story justly and I found myself getting lost in thoughts of how they may move when she tells her friends about me.

_Would she tell her friends about me?_ I started to doubt my impact on the woman and if I would be memorable. _She did invite her friend to lunch. That had to mean something right? Unless she didn't want to be alone with me…_ I shook my head softly enough so Alison wouldn't notice to snap myself out of my thoughts. _Don't be silly. Of course she brought a friend. Spencer was there._ I wasn't quite sure of the two doctors' history, but knowing how intimidating Spencer could be I'm surprised Alison even agreed to the lunch at all.

When I finally came back to reality we were walking up to a smaller elevator that seemed somewhat hidden in the back of the hospital. Since we were on the top floor, there was only one direction to go: down. My hand reached to press the button that would summon our ride without much thought. I wasn't aware that her hand was also on its way to press the button. Our fingers met before either of us reached it and I had to stifle a small gasp. Just the small brush of her fingertips against my own was enough to set all of my nerve endings on fire. I felt like I was in middle school and someone was holding my hand for the first time. I cleared my throat when I realized our hands were still suspended and neither of us had called the elevator.

Upon its arrival, we both entered and remained silent. I was refusing to make eye contact because I knew I was blushing. As we were riding down the elevator neither of us broke the silence as others got on and exited. When we were the last two left she let her beautiful voice fill the air. However, as she was telling me where we were about to arrive I interrupted her.

"Would you like to go on a date with me?" I blurted, not remembering it was rude to cut someone off mid-sentence. Her cheeks tinted to a shade of red as her eyes widened and I hoped I hadn't offended the blonde beauty. Once her eyes darted to the ground and her lips closed, seemingly in an effort to suppress a smile, I realized she was blushing. I took that as a sign to continue. "I'd like to have more than coffee and lunch with friends with you. Would dinner work? Tonight?"

A loud ding filled the air before she could speak. We had arrived on the lowest floor. Alison's arm stretched out towards me and in front of my body. She came close enough that I could smell the sultry fragrance of her perfume and I instantly found myself intoxicated. Her eyes found mine and she seemed to be moving closer and closer towards me. Her eyes flickered down to my lips and a wave of all-consuming desire slammed into my body. I wanted nothing more than to grab the shorter woman's face and envelop her lips with my own.

I was snapped out of my trance when I heard a soft giggle escape from her lips. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion before I realized she had gotten closer in an effort to hold the elevator door open. I was instantly mortified by my assumptions and hurriedly tried to escape the confines of the small box. As soon as both of my feet hit the tile of the hallway I felt the same slender fingers from earlier grab my hand causing me to turn around and bring my attention back to Alison.

"I'd love to, Emily." She gave me a knowing smile- almost as if to apologize for teasing me. _So she did know what she was doing…_ I wanted to chuckle at her antics. I knew I was in for a wild ride with this one. "Tonight sounds perfect." She continued. "I have a surgery that should only last a couple of hours, but I should be ready by seven?"

Her time was framed into a question when it didn't have to be. I'd have dinner with her at three A.M. if I needed to. My eyes fell to our hands when I noticed she was still holding onto mine. I turned my palm over to give hers a gentle squeeze back.

"It's a date." I confirmed with my biggest smile. She returned a toothy grin and chuckled as she squeezed my hand once more as if to say she was looking forward to it.

I heard someone loudly clearing their throat and realized we were standing in the middle of where the hallway and elevator met. I dropped Alison's hand and she waved at the nurse who cleared their throat before following me out of the elevator. We both avoided eye contact for a moment. Between the excited butterflies that were flying all around my stomach and the interruption of an intimate moment, I wasn't sure I could handle anything else for a few seconds.

"So!" She replaced the soft tone she had been speaking within the elevator to me with her more professional 'tour guide' voice. "This is the surgical floor." Her arms outstretched widely to display the large area where doctors were putting on surgical booties and entering what I assumed were scrub rooms. My medical knowledge was limited, but I've watched Grey's Anatomy long enough to know that I probably wasn't allowed down here.

_Play it cool, Emily._ I tried to soothe myself in order not to succumb to the anxiety that was starting to creep up. _If you act like you're meant to be here no one will question it._ I felt the shorter woman's eyes scan over me and I wondered if I had been caught. I heard her giggling and let my eyes fall to meet her glowing blue orbs. I could see that she thought something was funny.

"Don't worry, Emily. I didn't bring you here to trap you in an OR to have you all to myself." She chuckled as she gently squeezed my arm. The gesture was sweet and served to bring me back down to earth and out of my endless loop of thoughts. I actually didn't mind the thought of her having me all to herself…

"That's too bad." I shot back with a wink. I assumed since she accepted my offer of a date she wouldn't mind a little unabashed flirting. Her mouth shot open and she playfully swatted my arm where she had just squeezed.

"Dr. Fields!" She faked surprise before dropping the act and leading me to a door a little past the seating area where doctors were preparing for surgery. When she pushed it open it led to some stairs that were heading up and I assumed we would be going back to the hospital lobby. I let her lead- not for another view of her ass, but I couldn't deny that it was a perk of being the follower rather than the leader. We only made it up one flight of steps before I realized these stairs only led to a single door and there were no additional flights to carry us up further.

While I was a little confused, I did trust the blonde so I followed her as she entered the area behind the door. I looked right first and noticed two rows of seating. I chuckled to myself thinking it kind of resembled an OR gallery from Grey's. My inward chuckle was halted as I saw the big glass panes separating the room and the OR below us. I gasped when I saw someone on the table split open and surgeons with their hands inside of them.

"Oh my god!" I let out, my shock taking overall logical thinking. "What are they doing to him?!" I could feel that my eyebrows were furrowed deeply in concern and I only grew more concerned as I noticed the weird look the blonde was giving me at my reaction.

_Fuck, Emily._ I berated myself. _She thinks you're a fucking neurosurgeon. Blood and guts should be an everyday thing for you._ I swallowed heavily and tried to replace my concerned expression with a smile. It must have not fully worked as she led me to one of the chairs in the front row and helped me sit down. I assumed I looked how I felt- like I was about to faint- because I felt the blonde's right hand gently rest on my back and her left grasped on my own. Concern was evident on her face.

"Are you okay?" She questioned with absolutely no judgment, though I would not have been surprised if it was evident in her voice. Her voice was gentle, soothing, and only full of concern. I took a deep breath to center myself so I could play this off.

"Of course. I just don't think I've ever seen this procedure done before." That seemed to click with her and I felt a bit more calm knowing I may have been successful in excusing my strange behavior.

"Ah… I forgot." She chuckled, removing her right hand from my back. When I felt her left hand let go of mine I pouted a bit. _Maybe I should have continued to act bothered..._ My thoughts were interrupted as Alison's right hand grabbed my hand that she had just left behind and she used her left hand to point towards the monitor that had a feed of what the surgeons were doing, but closer up, instead. "See that little thing they just pulled out?" she questioned as I saw something that looked squishy and red being placed into a metal bowl. I had to suppress a gag as I felt my stomach doing flips at the gruesome sight. When I noticed she was turned back to me I put a smile on my face to hide my disgust and nodded my head gently.

"That…" She smiled at me widely before turning back to the monitor. "Is the head of the pancreas. They're doing a pancreaticoduodenectomy." I did not understand a single thing she just said. _Pancreat-i-what? Since when does a pancreas have a head? If I'm a head doctor, was I supposed to know that?_ My inner thoughts were quieted as she spoke again. "I only saw one or two in my residency. I didn't see more until my fellowship in peds. I wasn't assigned to general surgeon attendings much, either. It's also called a 'whipple'." my confusion mellowed a bit.

"Oh! Dr. Bailey does those." Alison looked at me slightly confused before a deep laugh erupted from her stomach. I couldn't help but laugh along as the girl seemed to be completely consumed by the joke I didn't realize I told.

"Like from Grey's Anatomy?" She questioned. I nodded my head smiling widely at how hard I was making her laugh. I made a mental note to try and do that at least once every time I saw her. Her laugh was infectious. _Good thing we're in a hospital._ I thought. I didn't have to hide my laughter at my silent joke from the blonde as she was still recovering from her outburst. She let go of my hand to wipe some tears from her eyes. "I haven't seen that show in forever- but, yes...Dr. Bailey does do those." A few more soft chuckles escaped from her lips.

"It's been years since I had to look at a patient's guts. I do brains you know…" I said lightly to hopefully redeem myself. She turned her body towards me, forgetting about what was happening in the OR below us.

"I do know." She said and smiled. "You must be really good for Dr. Hastings to request your help with a patient." I gave a shy smile and shrugged my shoulders. I didn't want to start discussing my credentials before I had even had time to make up imaginary ones. I decided to just go with some truth as to why we could be working together.

"Spencer and I go way back. We went to high school together." I began. She seemed to be fascinated by this information and I could tell I had her full attention.

"No way!" She exclaimed. "You have to tell me what she was like in high school." She wasn't begging for information, but I could tell that she would find a way to ask again if I didn't indulge her. Plus, it was good to stay in territory that didn't involve me having to lie.

"If you know Spencer now, you knew Spencer then." I giggled. "She has not changed one bit." I said matter-of-factly then offered her more information. "Well...except for the bangs. She did not have those back then."

"You will have to show me pictures sometime." She asserted. I was all too excited to share the Spencer I knew with Alison and began to pull my phone out when a loud beeping rang through the air. The blonde loudly groaned before grabbing the small black box that was clipped to her waistband.

"Shit." She mumbled springing up quickly. "I'm being paged 911." She looked at me apologetically and I waved her off. It probably appeared as though I completely understood. I did not. However, thankfully my friendship with Spencer and the doctors of Grey's Anatomy meant that I could easily empathize. Her eyes watched me tuck my phone back into my pocket and she seemed a bit sad as she looked between me and the door. "Maybe on our second date?" She inquired and I laughed out loud.

"We haven't even had our first!" I said through giggles.

"Well, I'm betting on our future, Dr. Fields." I felt a blush creep up to my cheeks as I smiled at the shorter woman.

"Fine." I said matter-of-factly. "I'll show you the pictures at our wedding." I teased and Alison laughed loudly. _God that laugh!_ Her blue eyes were absolutely shining and I could tell that her laugh was genuine.

"I suppose I will settle for seeing the pictures when I have your babies." She said before continuing to laugh. I joined in and rolled my eyes.

"Go!" I shooed her with my hands. One of her patients was probably out there dying and she was standing here flirting with me. She faked disdain as her mouth fell open.

"Dr. Fields, that is no way to talk to your future wife and baby mama." She scolded before breaking down back into giggles. The joke was quickly halted when her pager beeped loudly- ripping through the air again. She threw her head back and yelled towards the sky. "Fine! I'm coming." She turned to leave the room, but not before looking back at me.

"Seven right? I'll meet you in the lobby?" I nodded my head before sending her off with a laugh:

"Our first date is at seven, yes. The wedding is at eight and then the baby-making starts right after. I'd come prepared if I were you." I said as seriously as I could. Her long locks fell further down her back as she tossed her head back in one last laugh. Her eyes met mine again and I couldn't help but break my seriousness and smile.

"I'll see you soon, Emily." And with that, she was out of the door. I heard her pager beeping again before the door fully shut and heard her yell out: "I'm coming damnit!" as her feet hit the ground faster. I'm assuming she took off running.

I giggled a bit at the blonde's frustration. She was so adorable. I couldn't help but continue to grin at our antics. My smile fell a little when I thought of our jokes about the future. While I know it was in jest, I was worried about the prospect of a forever. Would I be able to give her what she wanted?

_Woah, Emily._ I reigned myself in. _Let's just see how the first date goes._

I needed something to distract me so my thoughts wouldn't go any further. I peaked at the monitor showing the surgery and this time I did gag as something else was pulled from the patient's body and dropped into a metal bowl. I grimaced a bit as I willed myself to look away. It was not incredibly hard to do as I was starting to feel sick to my stomach.

I leaned forward to stand up, putting both of my hands on my knees and pushing myself up against gravity. However, once I stood up I realized I had absolutely no idea where I was going. I looked right and left for any kind of directional sign, but couldn't locate anything. I blew some air through my lips as I tried to rack my brain for any memory of how Alison got me here. After only a few seconds I gave up and sat back down. I pulled out my phone and texted Spencer:

" _Hey...can you come get me? I'm lost. -Em"_ I sat my phone down and tapped my foot anxiously against the ground. It wasn't long before I heard it chime.

" _Lost?! Where is Dr. D? -S"_ I could almost hear Spencer incredulously yelling through the phone. I was just lucky she wasn't with a patient and got back to me so quickly.

" _She got paged 911. I'm in an OR gallery. -Em"_ My fingers tapped my screen hurriedly. Spencer was missing the point.

" _An OR gallery? Em, WTF? Which OR? I'll be right there. -S"_ Most likely, I was about to get into big trouble. I could already feel Spencer's anger and she was nowhere near me.

I again looked around for any distinguishing information that could help me. Not seeing any numbers anywhere I grimaced as I knew Spencer would have some choice words for me after my next message: a single 'shrug' emoji.

Hopefully, she found me in the next few minutes. I wanted to go home and get changed for my date. When I remembered that there was a date to get ready for, I smiled so widely that my cheeks almost pushed my eyes closed. I realized that the woman who I was going on this date with got in the last word earlier- so I responded back to her out loud even though no one could hear me.

"I'll see you soon, Alison."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Their first date is coming! Please let me know what you think- any feedback is welcome. I felt inspired to write this so quickly because of the reviews I’ve been getting- I love hearing from you all! :) As always- Emison is endgame! 


	4. Chapter 4: Kiss Me

**Chapter 4: Kiss Me**

* * *

***Alison's POV***

When I was younger I was always told I cared too much by the people who truly knew me. I'd cry when I dropped my favorite stuffed animal because I didn't want it to get hurt. I would completely break down if I thought my mother was sad. When I came out in high school and lost half of my friends I thought I'd never mend the crack that tore into my heart.

I did, though. I finished stitching myself up and threw away the needle and thread because I thought that maybe the "caring too much" would end. Then my sister died. The crack that tore into the surface of my heart ripped all of the way through and I was left in pieces. I definitely thought I'd never care again in a world so cruel. I spent a lot of time matching the world and being unnecessarily cruel to people after that. I even convinced myself that I had become heartless for a while before I realized I was doing it because I was hurting.

Eventually, I realized all the pain had hardened me and I finally got the help I needed to cope with the loss I had faced. I vowed to live a different life than I ever had before. First, I was going to help people as much as I could. Secondly, I promised to let myself feel whatever I felt without judgment in an effort not to bottle things up. Lastly, I would treat life like the precious gift it was and not take a single moment for granted.

Even with my new outlook on life, nothing went back to the way it was before. I didn't care for myself as much- I'd been to hell and back and I didn't need to. Instead, I cared for others more deeply than ever before. I didn't want anyone to feel anywhere close to an ounce of the pain that I felt, or had caused, ever again.

That is why I had to use my hands to support my body weight as I leaned against the long sink in the scrub room. After 6 hours in what was supposed to be a routine surgery, I nearly lost the little boy who was being carted to the ICU. My entire body had gone numb as a cold feeling hit me from head to toe. Dr. Montgomery came through the automatic doors from the OR and I could feel her pity without her having to voice it. Anytime we almost lost a patient there was a one in ten chance of this happening.

"Are you okay?" Her soft voice broke the silence. I took a deep breath before turning my head towards her and nodding weakly. "He's alive, Ali. And he's going to stay that way." She reassured me.

"I know...I know. It's just…" My sentence trailed off as my mind went to all of the worst-case scenarios. "I almost took away someone's brother. Someone's son… All of that pain would've been on me." Aria shook her head no and didn't let me carry on any further.

"Even if, Ali… All you try and do is give people the best chance they have. _You_ gave that boy life. It wasn't you who tried to take it away- you fought whatever forces were against him and kicked their asses out of the door." She said seriously. "You _saved_ that little boy's life. You _saved_ someone's brother." Her hand found my shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly.

I knew she was right. I'm not sure what caused him to tank during that surgery, but I do know it wasn't anything Aria or I did. We aren't in the business of 'almosts' and I needed to be focused on the facts. Fact number one: I'm not leaving the hospital tonight in case something happens to that little boy. I loudly groaned as I began scrubbing out and washing my hands. Aria's eyes widened as she scrubbed her hands as well.

"Was it something I said?" She joked. The sound of the soap brushes against our skin was so loud that she had to amplify her voice. I honestly wasn't sure how we even had skin left below our elbows.

"I can't leave now." I whined. "I'm going to have to cancel on Emily." If I wasn't sad before I was absolutely miserable now. I heard Aria scoff and I looked over at her with my brows furrowed in confusion. "What?" I asked. Her eyebrows shot up as if I was missing something.

"I think you may have already done that." Her eyes shot up in the direction of the clock that was hanging on the OR wall. It was well past seven. In fact- it was almost ten o'clock.

"Shit! Did it take us that long to recover him?" Aria nodded and began rinsing off her arms. "God, Emily is going to hate me. She's probably going to think I forgot about her." At that Aria rolled her eyes.

"She's a doctor, Ali. She'll understand. Don't be so hard on yourself." She grabbed a towel to dry her hands off and handed me one as well. She shot me a smile "Plus, I saw the way she looked at you. I guarantee you she is still waiting for you in the lobby." I perked up at her prediction.

"In that case, I will see you tomorrow." I began to quickly leave the room when I heard Aria call towards me.

"Hey!" She almost yelled. When I turned around to acknowledge her she continued, "I can stay here tonight and check on him. Go and have fun." She offered sweetly. I waved her off.

"Aria, it's 10 o'clock at night. No where is even open except for the bar across the street and I'd rather not try and get to know her while surrounded by a bunch of interns getting hammered. If Emily is still waiting I'll just have to apologize and reschedule. Go!" I encouraged her. "Have fun while you're young." I teased and she rolled her eyes.

"You are like two years older than me. I just got a late start." She said mildly annoyed, but mostly in jest. "Fine. If you aren't going to I suppose I will go get hammered with the interns. I haven't met them all yet...do you think there are any cute ones?" She began to wonder out loud.

"Aria." I broke her out of her thoughts. "Go before I change my mind. One of us needs to get laid tonight." I rolled my eyes at the mention of my ruined plans. I can't say our night would've ended with the two of us sharing a bed together, but I can't say it wouldn't have. I had no intention of rushing into things...but I'm not sure if I'd be able to resist the tall raven-haired beauty when, or if, things head in that direction.

 _I guess now I won't have to._ My thoughts sulked. _At least not tonight._ Aria shot me one last smile before walking around me to exit the scrub room. "Go get em' tiger!" I called out after her and I heard her loudly laugh as she walked out of sight.

As soon as she was gone I felt nervousness take over my body. I was aware of every hair on my arms as they seemed to stand on end. I heard a loud beating in my ears and tried to will my heart rate to slow down. I wasn't even sure if Emily was still waiting. Either way, I needed to find out sooner rather than later. I didn't want the woman waiting any longer than she already had lest she begin to wonder if I was worth the wait.

My feet began to carry me towards the lobby while my brain was rehearsing an apology. The hospital halls were quiet as most guests had left already. This made the soft tap of my rubber-soled shoes against the smooth tile echo throughout every hall I walked in. I was beginning to grow tired of the noise when I reached the large open space where I hoped Emily was waiting.

I noticed that there were only one or two people in the whole lobby and I felt disappointment start to spread throughout my body. That was until my eyes fell upon the breathtakingly gorgeous woman. I couldn't help but smile at the way she was seated.

She was tucked away in a corner with her head resting in her hand while her arm propped it up. Her phone was loosely in her other hand and I worried it may slip out. The darker haired woman had fallen asleep while playing on the device and my mind wondered if she was more of a candy crush gal or if she stuck to social media. A few strands of hair had fallen onto her face and I found myself moving closer towards her.

When I finally reached her I sat in the open seat to her left. Taking advantage of the moment, I let my eyes scan over her features again as I had earlier at lunch. She was so beautiful, but she didn't act as if she knew it. I made a mental note to tell her every chance I got. Her features were so relaxed and I got lost in the slow rise and fall of her chest. She was in the middle of a hospital lobby but she slept as if she was safe in her own bed. I realized she must have been exhausted.

Finding the strength to wake her was difficult, but I didn't want to risk her waking up to find me staring at her like a creep. I had intended to just clear my throat softly until she came back to reality, but no air came from my chest to produce the noise and I felt my hand traveling on its own accord towards the sleeping girl's face. My fingertips met her skin and I almost had to close my eyes at the rush I felt up my arm. Her skin was so soft and the contact of her warm cheek against my fingers sent tingles past my knuckles and wrist. The physical excitement that had arisen made itself apparent in my neck as I felt the harsh beat of my pulse show itself. I felt myself licking my lips before holding the bottom one between my teeth.

I was sitting down, but the softest touch made me feel weak in the knees. The thoughts that bounced around my head were jumbled beyond reason. One rang louder than the others though: _how do you make me feel so much without even doing anything?_ Trying to make sense of the phenomenon was futile- I was sure of that. However, I couldn't help but hope that I was about to begin a journey of fate and destiny. Would it still have the same outcome if I let her sleep just a few moments longer?

I let my fingers fall over her cheek before pushing the strands of stray hair back behind her ear. I saw her body begin to stir and let the pad of my thumb graze her skin once more before withdrawing my hand.

"Emily?" I called as softly as possible. This seemed to finish the job and I watched her eyes open slowly to meet mine. A sleepy smile graced her face and she mumbled a soft 'Ali' to which I chuckled. If she thought she was dreaming I was very flattered by her greeting. She blinked a few more times before her brows furrowed in confusion as her head turned right and left quickly. A blush crept up to her cheeks when she realized she had fallen asleep in the lobby.

"I didn't mean to fall asleep. Did I sleep through our date?" She shyly asked and I felt a giggle escape my lips.

"No, Emily. I'm sorry, my patient started tanking during surgery and it took me longer than expected to bring him back." My tone was one of apology, but in case the message wasn't clear I continued. "It's already late and I have to stay here to make sure he's okay. I think I'm going to have to reschedule." Disappointment was evident in my voice, but she honestly didn't seem very bothered. I wasn't able to feel hurt for very long before she chimed in.

"No." She said confidently. I was more than confused and was starting to worry I had offended her. I felt her warm hand envelop my cold one and she gave it a squeeze. I think she was reading my thoughts because she went on, "I mean we can just have our date here. If you have to stay I'll stay too." She smiled while her thumb ran across the back of my hand. I could hardly believe I had just met her this morning.

"Emily…" I began, "You don't have to do that…" I wouldn't object to the time with her, but she was clearly tired and needed some rest.

"Don't be silly, Ali." I blushed at her use of the nickname. "Come on...it's our wedding night, remember? You wouldn't want me to leave you all alone." She said very seriously before bursting into a fit of giggles. Remembering our joke from earlier, I joined in.

"I showed up late to our wedding and I'm not even prepared. I don't have anything old, new, borrowed, _or_ blue." I pouted a bit dramatically before she let go of my hand and picked up her purse. "Woah, you do know I'm joking right?" I laughed, but secretly I was a little afraid she was about to leave. I had to stifle a sigh of relief when she unzipped her purse rather than standing up and leaving with it. It appeared as though she completely ignored what I said as she rifled through the contents of her bag.

"Aha!" She said victoriously and held up a small crumpled piece of paper. Her body turned back towards me and her hands outstretched towards my chest. I looked around worried someone was about to see Emily groping me and wondered what led us to second base already... A giggle escaped my lips once I realized she was going for the small pocket in my scrubs. She placed the small piece of paper inside. "Something old." she asserted.

I took the small piece of paper out and saw that it was a receipt for a slushy from a gas station. I giggled and tucked it back safely into my pocket. Her hands were buried into her purse before pulling out a blue hair tie and handing it to me. My hair was already folded up into my scrub cap so I took it off revealing my braided locks. I took out the black hair tie holding the braid together and shook out my hair before pulling it into a loose ponytail and securing it with the blue band.

"Something blue." I acknowledged smiling widely. She shook her head yes and smiled back, eyeing me up and down flirtily, before digging through her purse again.

This time she pulled out a tube of lipstick and started reapplying the same shade she was currently wearing. I was a little confused but my thoughts were halted as the raven-haired beauty started moving closer to me. I noticed her face coming within mere inches of mine and my breath caught in my chest. I could feel my pulse raging against my neck again, but I could've sworn my heart was frozen in that moment. Her warm, brown eyes flicked down to my lips and I had to force myself to swallow so that when I opened my mouth I wouldn't flood the hospital.

She moved in close enough that our breaths were intertwined. Our lungs were sharing the same source of oxygen and I felt like I was one with her without even touching her. I wanted to see everything that was happening, but seeing the taller woman so close to me was pushing me over the edge of sanity. Every sense I had was on hyper-alert and as she began to close the gap between us even further my eyes closed.

She was so close that I could feel her soft breath on my lips and if I just moved a few centimeters closer I could feel her lips against my own. Before I got the chance to, however, I felt her lips move away from mine and to my right. Her lips gently met my cheek in a soft caress. While it wasn't originally what I wanted, I was starting to think it was better. The breath that now escaped through her nose tickled my ear and it took everything I had in me not to moan.

When she pulled back she looked a bit smug and I realized that was most likely payback for earlier in the elevator. I didn't notice she had a small compact in her hands until she pulled back completely and held up the small mirror for me to gaze into.

"Something new." She pointed out and my fingers lightly brushed the spot she marked with her lipstick. A soft shade of pink lips were now displayed on my right cheek. I couldn't help but giggle and roll my eyes slightly as my fingers trace the space she just kissed. I longed to feel her lips back on my skin and judging by the harsh rise and fall of my chest I think she could tell.

 _Would it count as something borrowed if I made her take my panties home to wash them?_ I thought. _After all, she is the one who just ruined them._ While slutty me had a point, I couldn't deny that my heart was also hers for the taking. Every interaction I had with the woman made me long to be closer to her. I was beginning to believe our meeting was less of an accident and more 'grand design'.

"Something borrowed?" I inquired, knowing my panties or heart were not good suggestions at the present time. She smiled at me and reached under her long dark locks to the back of her neck. It was at this moment I finally noticed what she was wearing. A simple white shirt hugged the curve of her breasts loosely. The majority of the rest of her upper body was hidden by the black cardigan she was wearing except for the tops of her shoulders where there were cutouts to reveal her warm-toned skin. Her shirt also gave a slight peak at the woman's cleavage. It left much to the imagination, but my imagination was not one to sleep on the job. It took the sliver of skin and ran wild imagining what was lower.

My eyes fell to something shining against her skin when I noticed she was removing the small metal piece. I watched her smile when she finally unclasped it and she began to come closer to me again. I felt myself licking my lips as I eyed hers. They moved closer and closer and I knew if I just moved quickly enough I could capture them… I felt her fingertips graze the back of my neck and she smirked as I shuddered. Once she had clasped the necklace around my neck she moved back again. The slight frustration was replaced by curiosity when I remembered her putting her jewelry on me.

I followed the white gold chain to the charm that hung on it and smiled with furrowed brows. "A?" I questioned, referencing the letter hanging off of the necklace.

"It's the first letter of the alphabet." She began. "It's silly, but it reminds me that there is always something that comes next. Every moment is its own beginning. Every moment is its own 'A'." She put 'A' in air quotes. I could tell she felt a bit shy as she explained. "Some days I need the fresh start you know? I have to believe that there is more to come." She blushed a bit and was playing with her fingers in her lap. I used my right hand to halt their movements.

"That's beautiful, Emily." I said genuinely and she smiled. "You should probably not trust me with this." I quickly said, knowing the necklace meant a lot to her. My fingers twirled over the small metal 'A' and while I was not a grinch I could feel my heart growing three sizes.

"Something borrowed." She said as she met my eyes again, letting me know she would not be taking it back. "Plus, I have you now. Your name starts with an A. That's a reminder enough." She smiled softly at me.

"I guess you'll have to keep me." I winked to break some of the intimate tension we had created.

"I guess I will." She responded. It was in no way a promise, but it somehow felt like maybe it could be.

***Emily's POV***

I had hardly taken my eyes off of the blonde all night. Her blue eyes were sparkling and added some contrast to the dimly lit hospital. I assumed I could stare into them for a lifetime and I was hoping she'd let me find out. Her cheeks were glowing due to a permanent smile that I was doing my best to maintain.

I blushed every time she turned in a way that I could see my lip print gracing her cheek. A few strands had fallen out of her loose ponytail and now framed her face like she was a work of art. In truth, she was. Her beauty was astounding. My eyes did occasionally fall to where my necklace bounced lightly against her scrub top. I felt a sense of pride well up in me that the woman was wearing something of mine.

My thoughts ran with what she may look like in one of my old t-shirts. I heard a gasp fill the air and my wandering mind was brought back to the present. I realized the blonde had emitted the noise at finally coming across a vending machine in the desolate hospital. Neither of us had eaten since lunch and we were about five seconds away from my stomach singing the song of its people.

We shared a few items from the machine and seemingly talked about everything and nothing at the same time. We sat in a secluded corner of the hospital where there was a low table with four chairs surrounding it. The four chairs granted an opportunity for us to sit apart, but we did not seize it. Instead, we occupied the seats right next to one another and throughout our conversation we drifted close enough that I could feel warmth radiating off of her body.

"This is so easy." I mused out loud, not even really realizing I had verbalized my thoughts. Alison entertained my musings and smiled.

"What do you mean?" Her eyes were still sparkling and I had a feeling she knew and just wanted to hear my answer. "I don't know about you, but it is never hard for me to eat snacks…" I giggled at her fake obviousness and grabbed the small bag of chips she was holding to have a few for myself.

"You know…" I began, looking down into the bag of chips to avoid eye contact so she couldn't read all of my feelings before I even had a chance to process them. "This." I gestured between her and me with the bag of chips. "Just talking to you." She leaned back into her chair a bit and I found myself missing the soft warmth that she had been providing.

"I do know." She said with a small smile on her face before she giggled. "Is it crazy though? We just met this morning and I feel like I could tell you anything." I smiled at the woman being so bold in making her comfort around me known.

"I don't think so." I answered her question. "If there's one thing I've learned it's that life is just too short to live by timelines that were set by someone who isn't you. I feel like I've known you forever." I blushed at my honesty. "Who am I to try and justify against a connection like that?" Alison's cheeks were turning bright pink and she giggled a bit before leaning back closer to me, this time touching her arm to my own and leaning her head on my shoulder.

We sat in comfortable silence before Alison whipped out her phone and put some music on. We rocked back and forth a little to the acoustic music and I put my arm around her. The closeness felt like a prize for something I didn't even know I was competing for. Not in a way that I was objectifying the woman...I just wasn't used to feeling so vulnerable at someone's touch. I began to feel incredibly guilty about what was supposed to be a little white lie. Everyone always comes and goes and, even though I hoped for the opposite, I imagined Alison would just do the same after a night in bed together.

The revolving door of people that entered and immediately left my life was most likely my fault. Ever since my diagnosis, I didn't want to get too close to anyone and end up leaving them non-voluntarily. I remember how long it took my mom to even be able to get off of the couch after my dad died and I couldn't imagine doing that to someone. So I made myself emotionally unavailable and told myself it was for the best.

This though...what it felt like to be here in the simplest of moments with Alison...I'm not sure I could be unavailable even if I wanted to. I felt a deep need in the depths of my chest to allow this woman in. There was an invisible tug that I felt towards her. I needed to tell her the truth about not actually being a doctor. I began to open my mouth to say something when she shot up and turned to me with a huge grin on her face.

"Dance with me." She said, not at all actually asking. My mouth was left hanging open because I almost dropped a truth bomb and she had no idea. "Come on…" She pressed. "It is our wedding night after all. I believe you owe me a first dance." She looked so cute with her persistence written across her face. I chuckled deeply, forgetting my previous train of thought, when she leaned a little closer to me before continuing, "You're right..." She said a little more seriously, "We're only strangers if we act like it...let's just skip that part." She smiled, "Dance with me." The blonde said once more. I stood up, grinning like a fool, and outstretched my arm towards her.

Her soft hand fell gently into my own and I again felt vulnerable in our shared closeness. I pulled her close to me, letting her head fall onto my right shoulder, in an effort to avoid eye contact and hide how much this moment was making me feel. I wondered if she could feel my heartbeat hammering against my rib cage. The motion was so strong that I was sure it was rattling every bone in my body. I had not even gotten my arm all the way around her before Kina Grannis' version of 'Kiss Me' by Sixpence None The Richer started playing.

The soft strum of the guitar lulled my heart down to a slower speed. I wasn't sure how I could possibly feel so much all at once, but I was sure of one thing: I felt at peace. In this perfect moment in this imperfect world, I felt untouchable. There was no cancer. There was no pain. Only her and only me. Her body melted into mine and I felt like I'd been given the most important job in the world: to protect her. She probably would never need it, but I would offer it nonetheless.

Her cheek moved against my shoulder and I could tell she was smiling. Her left arm was wrapped around my lower back and I brought her other hand that was perched in mine towards my chest. The light smell of the shorter woman's shampoo invaded my senses and I felt intoxicated. We rocked back and forth gently as the singer's voice softly traveled through the air:

_Kiss me, out of the bearded barley_

_Nightly, beside the green, green grass_

_Swing, swing, swing the spinning step_

_You wear those shoes and I will wear that dress_

_Oh, kiss me, beneath the milky twilight_

_Lead me out on the moonlit floor_

_Lift your open hand_

_Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance_

_Silver moon's sparkling_

_So kiss me..._

I closed my eyes and imagined we were under the stars and living in the song that filled the air around us. I could almost see it in my mind: the moon reflecting in Alison's big blue eyes as I held her close...her soft lips brushing mine as we danced. I could see her pulling back with a smile that stretched so wide her eyes would be squinting...laughing at a joke only we knew. I found myself getting jealous of my imagination because it had already been closer to her than I had. I wondered what it would be like to feel the blonde's lips on my own. My heart rate was picking up again at the thought, but I couldn't wonder for long.

Alison pulled back from my embrace, but still held onto me. I missed the weight of her head on my chest and felt the absence of it immediately. Her blue orbs met my own and I could tell there was something she wanted to say. I could feel her chest rising and falling a bit more quickly than it was just a few seconds ago. Her eyes fell down to my lips and I saw her trap her bottom lip between her teeth. There was a playful glint in her eye and I was hoping I'd get to soothe her bottom lip since she was still chewing softly on it.

The song continued on but I felt we were suspended in time. The air I was breathing halted in my lungs. I felt afraid to move as a heavy tension filled the air. My arms began to tingle as I held the woman close to me and I swallowed heavily. One more beat of silence filled the air before her soft voice reached my ears...

"Kiss me, Emily." she said tenderly and I forgot how to breathe. I felt her left hand travel to the back of my neck. Her fingers softly traveled up the back of my head and mingled with my long dark locks. I couldn't tell if she was pulling me closer or if I was moving in...but our foreheads softly touched and I felt our breaths intertwine. My left hand was still holding her right one and they were snuggled firmly between our chests. Her eyes were hidden from me when they fluttered closed. I followed suit, closing my eyes to get some reprieve from all of my senses being put into overdrive. "Kiss me…" she said barely above a whisper. I wasn't going to keep her waiting…

I tilted my head a bit to the right and leaned in to close the gap between us. I softly grazed my lips with hers and, if I wasn't sure before, I was positive now that time had stopped. I could feel my feet planted on the ground but my body felt as if it was floating. After a few seconds, my heart was beating so fast that I could hardly take the aggressive thumping so I began to pull back. Her hand that was resting in my hair made itself known again when Alison pulled me back to her lips and enclosed my top lip between hers. It was only a slow kiss for a moment before I felt desire hit both of us at the same time.

She removed her hand from where it was nuzzled between our chests and her other from my hair. Then I felt her hands grab both sides of my face. My hands shot to her hips to help her hold her weight as she began to kiss my lips hungrily. My tongue lightly grazed her lips begging for entrance. Her breath hitched at the request and I took the opportunity to enter. Our breath was trading with one another and I began to feel lightheaded. I let my tongue softly dance with hers before lightly holding her bottom lip between my teeth and pulling back, gently scraping along the way. At this Alison softly moaned.

The sound made both of us giggle softly and we pulled back just enough so that we could breathe some fresh air. Her cheeks were completely flushed and I'm sure mine looked the same. My eyes fell to the small charm dangling under her neck. I brought one hand up from her hip to place the object between my fingers. I referenced our earlier conversation more to myself than to her.

"There's always something that comes next." I smiled, insinuating that I had found what I was referring to. Her blue eyes looked up to meet mine.

"And what's that?" She smiled, almost knowingly. I let the small charm go and put my arms around her waist as hers draped around my neck. My eyes fell to her lips before they met hers again. We shared a silent conversation before I voiced my thoughts out loud.

"You." I smiled softly before leaning back in to capture her lips in between my own. She giggled against my kiss and smiled so widely that I was practically just kissing her teeth before she began to return the lip lock.

 _God help me, Alison._ Was all I could manage to think. _God help me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Their first kiss! If you didn't while you were reading- I highly suggest reading their first kiss again while listening to Kina Grannis' version of Kiss me. Maybe it's just me, but it puts me right in my feels. Did anyone catch where the last line is from? (Hint: it's a little throwback to the first chapter.)
> 
> Please let me know what you think! Any feedback is welcome- I get a new wave of inspiration every time I hear from you all!


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